Coin selecting device



April 24, 1934. .J. GOTTFRIED 1,956,066

COIN SELECTING DEVICE Original Filed April 30, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet lINVENTOR ATTORNEYS April' 2 4, 19.34. J. GOTTFRIED COIN SELECTING DEVICEOriginal Filed April 30, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Joy/v G/OTTFRHE'DATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 24, 1934 1,956,066 com SELECTING DEVICE JohnGottfried,

B. & G. Coin Selectors,

port, Conn.

Application April 30, 1930, Serial New Haven, Conn., assignor toIncorporated, Bridge- Renewed September 20, 1933 7 Claims. (01. 194-97)The present invention relates to fraud pre-' venting apparatus for useon coin controlled machines and has for an object to provide improvedapparatus for separating genuine coins from counterfeit coins and slugs.Genuine coins are uniformly made of certain metals and the slugs usedfor fraudulently operating coin controlled machines are made invariablyof other materials than the genuine coins. It is therefore possible bythe use of selective devices which affect differently coins made ofdifierent metals to separate certain selected genuine coins fromvarious, other coins, counterfeit coins or slugs made of othermaterials.

The present invention has been developed more particularly in connectionwith the production of a coinseparating device for use on a coincontrolled mechanism designed to be operated by a silver twenty-fivecent piece and for the purposes of illustrating the principles of theinven-' tion such an embodiment of the invention will be moreparticularly described.- It will be understood. however, that certainfeatures of the inven-- tion are equally applicable to devices forseparating other coins.

Referring to the drawings in which is illustrated a selected embodimentof the invention- Fig. 1 is a view partly in elevation and partly insection of a device embodying the principles to of the invention,

Fig. 2 is a side view of the same,

Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view taken centrally through the lower coinchute,'and

Fig. 4 is. a sectional view taken on IV-IV of Fig. 3.

In the structure shown for the purposes of illustration a coin insertedin the apparatus is caused to roll by gravity along a passage leading toa coin controlled machine, suitable provision being made for divertingcoins of smaller denomination or slugs which may be inserted in anattempt fraudulently to operate the machine. A proper coin inserted' inthe apparatus through a coin slot 5 drops vertically to the floor of aninclined chute 6 and rolls therealong with substantial velocity to avertical chute 7 whence it drops to a second inclined chute 8., whereinit rolls-in the opposite direction and passes to a vertical chute 9 bywhich it is delivered to'the machine to be operated.

Provision is made for deflecting from the upper chute slugs formed ofiron and of certain other materials. As shown, this upper'chute isformed with a gap 10 toward its lower end at a point at which a coinrolling in the chute has attained a the line or slug is substantialvelocity. A silver twenty-five cent piece rolling along the chute 6 willattain a sulficienil velocity and will have suflicient momentum to passover the gap 10 and continue to the chute 7. Provision is made, however,for causing an iron slug and certain other counterfeit devices to fallthrough the gap 10 to the chute 12 to be returned at the front of thedevice. The means shown for diverting an iron slug consists of a magnet15 which will draw an iron or steel slug with suflicientforce to divertit from the normal path down into the chute 12. A spring 16, which forexample may be of phosphor bronze, is secured to one side wall of thechute 6 and arranged to press lightly against the opposite wall. This 7spring is spaced above the bottom of the coin chute a distanceapproximately equal to one half the diameter of the coin with which thedevice is designed to be used wherefore it engages the side face of thecoin or slug passing through the device substantially centrally and theengagement continues during a substantial period of time, that is to sayduring the time that the coin moving a distance equal to its diameter.

A rolling coin is engaged by this spring and pressed lightly against theopposite wall but the adjustment of the spring is such that a silvertwenty-five cent piece will nevertheless pass over into the chute '7. Alight weight pendulum 1'7 is suspended in the chute above the gap 10.The weight of this pendulum is such that it will be displaced by asilver twenty-five cent piece to permit passage to the chute 7, butcertain lighter coins or slugs will be stopped by it and divertedthrough the gap 10 to the chute 12.

The lower inclined chute 8 is provided with an arrangement forseparating silver coins from copper slugs and various other slugs'whichmay pass through to this part of the device. As shown, the bottom of thechute is cut away beyond the point 20, so that the coin passing thispoint is projected in a free trajectory.

In order to provide a strong magnetic field through which a coin rollingin the chute must pass, a permanent magnet 21 is arranged with polepieces 22 on either side of the chute 8, and if desired these polepieces may be inserted in holes formed in the walls of the chute, asbest shown in section in Fig. 4. The pole pieces and the chute wallspreferably being brazed together to insure permanently smoothness of thechute walls at this point. Various coins and slugs will be retarded asthey pass through this magnetic field, the extent of the retardationdepending upon the material of the coin or slug. The conductivity ofcopper and silver are such .that the copper is retarded only slightlymore than silver. In order, therefore,

to provide means for diverting the copper While permitting the silver topass from the normal plane of movement of the coin in the plane of thechute 8 to chute 9 there is provided a curved deflector slideway 24which is so positioned that it will permit a silver coin passing in acertain trajectory to fall into the chute 9, whereas a coin falling in aslightly shorter trajectory, such as that which a copper coin will take,will be deflected laterally into the chute 25, whence it will bereturned through the aperture 26 at the front of the device. A similardeflector 27 is positioned beyond the path of the silver coins to divertlaterally coins which have a longer trajectory. By this arrangement itis possible to select within very narrow limits coins having a certainspecific trajectory and, therefore, to make a sensitive se lectionbetween silver coins and slugs of various materials. This selectionwithin narrow limits is facilitated by the arrangement whereby thedeflector slides engage the side faces of the coins to move themlaterally from the normal plane of movement in the free trajectory whicharrangement makes possible the placing of the two deflector slides 24,27 far enough apart and far enough to the right and left (Fig. l) of thenormal path of movement of a genuine coin to be entirely clear of suchpath of movement.

It is desirable to make provision for preventing a spurious coin frombeing given an initial velocity when it is inserted in the coin slot 5,which will carry it past the gap 10. To this end a stop member 30 is sopositioned in the chute 6 that it will be struck by and will stopmomentarily a coin passing through the slot 5 with a high initialvelocity but will permit all coins to pass beneath it after fallingvertically to the bottom of the chute.

Coins dropping through the vertical chute '7 may bounce when strikingthe bottom of the chute 8 and, therefore, roll with more or lessvelocity in the chute 8. To prevent such irregularity a stop member 31is secured in the guide to cause the rolling of the coin'in the lowerchute to begin always at the same point.

The several parts of the device andespecially the coin chutes arepreferably made of non-magnetic material on account of the presence ofthe permanent magnet.

The foregoing particular description is illustrative merely and is notintended as defining the limits of the invention.

I claim:-

1. A coin separating device comprising, in combination, a coin chutealong which coins roll to attain a pre-determined velocity, said chutebeing formed with a gap in its bottom across which certain coins willpass, and a friction spring posi tioned in the coin chute and spacedabove the bottom of the coin chute a distance equal to approximately onehalf of the diameter of the coin with which the device is designed to beused to engage the sideface of the coin substantially centrally to pressthe coins against one side of the chute adjacent said gap to retard thecoins a greater or less amount depending upon the character of thecoins, whereby coins of certain character will be caused to drop throughthe gap.

2. In a coin separating device the combination with means for causingcoins to travel in a free trajectory in a pre-determined normal planeand coins to an extent depending upon the conduc-' tivity of thematerial of the coins, of a laterally deflecting slideway positioneddiagonally transversely of the normal plane of movement of the coins ata point entirely clear of the normal path of movement of the genuinecoin with which the device is designed to be used but in position toengage certain coins having a different path of movement to deflect said\coins laterally from the said normal plane of movement of the coins.

3. In a coin separating device the combination with means for causingcoins to travel in a free trajectory and a magnet for causing a magneticfield in the path of movement to retardthe movement of coins to anextent depending upon the conductivity of the material of the coins, ofdeflectors extending diagonally transversely of the path of movement ofthe coin at points to engage the side faces of and deflect laterallycoins which pass beyond or fall short of a pre-determined limited pathof movement.

4. In a coin separating device the combination with a coin chutearranged toproject coinsin a free trajectory and a magnet for causing amagnetic field to change the pathof movement of the coins to an extentdepending upon the electrical conductivity of the coins, whereby copperand silver coins will travel in different paths of a deflector slideway-positioned diagonally transversely of the path of movement of thecoins at a position to engage and deflect laterally coins of onematerial while permitting the passage of coins of the other material.

5. In a coin separating device the combination with means for causingcoins to travel in a free trajectory in a given plane and a magnet forcausing a magnetic field in the path of movement of the coins to retardthe movement of the coins in said plane to an extent depending upon theconductivity of the material of the coins of deflectors positionedentirely clear of the path of movement of coins retarded to a certainpredetermined extent but extending diagonally of the paths of movementof coins retarded to a greater or less extent to engage the sides of anddeflect laterally from the plane of the free trajectory such coins.

6. In a coin separating device the combination with means for causingcoins to travel in a free trajectory in a given plane and a magnet forcausing a magnetic field in the path of movement of the coins to retardthe movement of coins in said plane to an extent depending upon theconductivity of the material of the coins of a curved deflectorextending diagonally across the said given plane positioned to engagethe side faces of and divert laterally coins having a certain path ofmovement but positioned entirely clear of the path of movement ofcertain other coins.

'7. A coin separating device comprising, in combination, a coin chutealong which coins roll to attain a predetermined velocity, said chutebeing formed with a gap, a friction spring positioned to engage anddelay each coin to an extent depending on the character of the coin,said spring pressing the coin in a direction at a right angle to thedirection of movement of the coin through the gap.

JOHN GO'I'IFRIED.

